May 9, 2015

Label Spotlight: Transcending Obscurity Productions

By Kevin Page. Transcending Obscurity Productions from India, initially started as a webzine in 2005, then began releasing music in 2010. Let's talk about their three most recent offerings. Hailing from British Columbia, Canada, these Canuckleheads work in the sludgy doom ridden drone sewers of the metal world.

By Kevin Page.

Transcending Obscurity Productions from India, initially started as a webzine in 2005, then began releasing music in 2010. Let's talk about their three most recent offerings.

Artwork by Scott Stearns

Hailing from British Columbia, Canada, these Canuckleheads work in the sludgy doom ridden drone sewers of the metal world. Raw, evil, unpolished is the name of the game here. And with a bandname of The Whorehouse Massacre, I don't think I have to tell you what the lyrical content is about. This is a combination of the band's last two EP's that were released in 2013, Altar of the Goat Skull and VI, rolled into one nice little ditty for your listening (un)pleasure.

The first of two Australian bands we are featuring here. This Brisbane trio has unleashed their third full length album, Deathsteps to Oblivion, and a more appropriate title it could not be. While also heavily in the sludge domain, there's plenty of doomy death metal to go around. What the band is able to accomplish though is this interesting and unconventional amalgamation of sounds. Normally when you see these styles mentioned, you are fairly certain what you are gonna hear. But shatter that thought right now as they push the boundaries of what you would expect from each of the respective genres. I've yet to fully grasp all the nuances myself.

Norse, from the Southern Highlands of Australia, self released this EP, Pest, last year. Transcending Obscurity picked this up for a proper worldwide release this year, which was a smart move, as this simply needs to be heard. Classified as a blackened death metal, but it's so much more than that.

You'll notice the atonal riffs, but it doesn't really sound like Blut Aus Nord or Deathspell Omega (two of the more prominent bands you think of in that style). The music is as cold as black metal but with a dissonant thickness of frozen Vegemite. The vocals shriek and spew fire like a rabid dropbear. It's horrifying and sorta experimental at the same time. Kinda the same way all of Australia's wildlife is.